Food production relies upon a variety of agricultural technologies to ensure the growing population's dietary needs remain affordable, nutritious and readily available on grocery store shelves. Fungicides are one of these agricultural technologies which are available to the world community. Fungicides are agrochemical compounds which shield crops and foods from fungus and fungal diseases. Crops and food are constantly threatened by a variety of fungal organisms, which, if left uncontrolled, can cause ruined crops and devastated harvests.
In particular, ascomycetes, the causative agent for powdery mildew diseases are an ever-present threat especially to cereal and fruit crops. However, applications of fungicidal agents at disease control rates can cause phytotoxic damage to the target plants.
Therefore it is an object of this invention to provide a method to control phytopathogenic fungus without causing concurrent phytotoxic damage to the host plant.
It is another object of this invention to provide an effective and safe method for the protection of important agronomic crops from the damage and loss caused by a phytopathogenic fungal infection and the disease caused thereby.
It is a further object of this invention to provide benzophenone fungicidal agents and fungicidal compositions comprising a benzophenone compound.
These and other objects and features of the invention will become apparent from the detailed description provided hereinbelow.